Tweet
The Panzer is Monstrum's first, First Focal Plane (FFP) 1-10x and is distinguished from their other LPVO's with a new tank-tread texture on its turret caps and control surfaces. In addition, it comes with their PRO Series offset mount.
Another new feature is a removable fin on the magnification ring, which can be swapped for an included throw lever or removed entirely for a clean profile. It is held in place with a single Philips screw and the box includes a mini screw driver and Allen wrench for the turrets (I wonder why they didn't use a common hex screw instead). The turrets are capped and resettable. The 1/2 MOA turret cliks were clear and audible but not very tactile, moreover there was a bit of slop between each click.
At 17oz, the Panzer is relatively light for 30mm tube LPVO. It has a large ocular lens which gives it a nearly unobstructed field of view. Unfortunately, like many 1-10x LPVO's it has a tight and unforgiving eyebox, even at 1x. It has a decent eye-relief if about 4"
At 1x the image through the glass had a mild warm tint but no notable fish-eyeing. At 10x there is a softening at the the edges and loss of light and contrast. But its resolution is surprisingly sharp (as with other Monstrum LPVOs). Continued improvement in Chinese glass manufacturing have greatly improved budget glass.
The scope features their new CM2 reticle which is optimized for long range shooting at 10x. At 1x it appears as a simple "T" reticle but at 10x the central dot enlarges to become a circle-dot and with a finer long range reticle with MOA subtensions, wind holdovers, and a range estimation ladder at the base of the 'T'. The 10x reticle lilnes isn't as fine as higher end etches scopes like the Riton Tactix or Vortex Razor. The center dot is 1 MOA but this may still be too large obscure long range targets.
The Panzer offers red and green illumination with an intensity range from 1-5. Oddly, unlike their other LPVO's, the red appears more visible than the green at 1x. In fairness, the Panzer illumination brightness is typical of most LPVOs; not daylight bright but visible in low-light or CQB.
Its overall clarity and sharpness is good but not as good as premium 1-10x LPVOs by Vortex, Athlon, or EoTech. But it is perhaps one of the best budget scopes in its price tier and punches well above its weight. With a price tag just under $200 the Panzer offers features and optical clarity found in LPVOs that cost 2 to 3 times more (certainly better glass than the SIG Tango I recently reviewed). It comes with Monstrum's Lifetime warranty on workmanship (but not damage). It remains to be seen if the Panzer lives up to its tank-like name in terms of durability.
This LPVO is available on Amazon through this Affiliate link: https://amzn.to/3REH6yF
SPECS
Reticle: CM2
Lens Coating: Full Multi-Layer
Materials: 6061 Aircraft Grade Aluminum
Magnification: 1-10x
Objective Diameter: 24 mm
Rail Mount Torque: 20-25 in/lbs
Scope Ring Torque: 18 in/lbs
Tube Diameter: 30 mm
Max Windage Adjustment: ?70 MOA
Max Elevation Adjustment: ?70 MOA
Click Adjustment: 1/2 MOA
Eye Relief: 4.0-4.5 in
Weight: 17 oz
Length: 11 in
